our favorite quotes

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."— William Butler Yeats
refresh for more

Monday, March 1, 2010

On loneliness, pregnancy, birthing, baby names, and dinner . . . .

The Chief is gone right now.  For the week.  And I'm left staring at a computer screen because I can't face my kitchen again.  I spent the weekend baking bread and making cookies and cleaning up after myself (applause please).  But somehow in two days all my cleaning has been unraveled and my table and counter tops are now liberally strewn with dirty bowls, plates, and more than a little garbage (why don't I just put it in the trash instead of throwing it on the counter?  I'm SO lazy!).

Pregnancy is going well.  We have found a midwife that we are really excited to work with.  Today I had to endure a visit with a nurse practitioner in order to have an anatomy screening ultrasound ordered and lab work done (stuff my midwife wants).  Wendy, the nurse practitioner, asked me point blank why I had waited so long to come see an OB (I am now almost 24 weeks along) and I told her point blank that I felt my pregnancy was progressing just fine, so what was the point?  I think I baffled her.  We obviously didn't take to one another as she dished out commands and I responded with a multitude of questions regarding the expediency and necessity of each command.  I really didn't want to be there.  At the moment, I just want to be left alone to enjoy my pregnancy and that is what my midwife will be allowing me to do while my OB (or at least his nurse practitioner) wants me to undergo a barrage of unnecessary tests and procedures.  Luckily, I am past the point of amniocentesis, which really seemed to bother Wendy, but for which I inwardly rejoiced.  I don't care if it comes back positive for this or that defect.  I will love my child no matter how he emerges.  Oh, and I also wanted to slap Wendy when I happily announced that we were having another boy and her face fell, "Oh."  "We're excited!  We love boys!" I assured her.  "Really?  You're okay with this then?"  Seriously?  If I wasn't such a nice person, I would have told her to leave the room I was so perturbed by her condolences.  Anyway, I left her and went through the motions of making an appointment to see the actual OB in four weeks.  I'll be canceling that before it comes around, though, because we are going to be starting our maternity care with our midwife this Thursday.  It's so exciting!

The more The Chief and I talk about our home birth, the more excited we become.  It is thrilling to know that there won't be any packing of bags or late-night farming out of kids while we dash through the deserted streets to a sterile hospital room with bright lights, beeping monitors, and tubes and IVs everywhere.  I am looking forward to being able to move my body throughout labor, hop in the shower if I want, eat a meal and drink real water (instead of the dreaded and insufficient ice chips), soak in a birthing tub, go potty without nurse assistance, cuddle with my babe right when he makes his debut, and give my boys the invaluable opportunity of seeing true natural birth in action.  When I first started having strong inclinations toward home birth this time around, I thought The Chief would surely drag his heels throughout the entire process.  In past conversations, he had never been very supportive of this birthing path.  Now, however, he seems to be just as excited as I am.  I just don't think I could be happier right now. (Except if The Chief were here with me tonight, snoring away on the couch while the TV drones on in the background.  I miss him.)

Oh, and did I mention that we are naming our third son Karsten?  We are.  And we still haven't decided on a middle name.  I like Aksel, but I can't get The Chief to commit.  Anyway, Karsten is the Norwegian version of Christian, which means "blessed, anointed one, follower of Christ."  So now we have So-So "God of War, thunder, stern;" Bugs "Manly, Brave, Courageous;" and K-dog (I just made that up; think it'll stick?) "blessed, anointed one, follower of Christ."  The first two have done a heckofa job living up to their names.  :D  Hopefully Karsten will too.

Okay, I have to sign off and go figure out what to make for dinner co-op tomorrow night.  Any ideas?  Oh, and for those who requested my spinach shake recipe, I haven't forgotten about you . . . I'm just neglecting you.  :D  Hang tight.

I'm really loving on these scrumptious images right now.  Totally:

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

And for more of my late-night, lonely musings, visit my photo blog which I also updated tonight. :D

9 comments:

FreedomMom said...

why in the world, at 28 would they want you to have an amnio???

way to go home birth mama!

Annette said...

Love the name Karsten! We're considering Aksel too, looking for a good German name in honor of the place of conception/birth :) Its so fun to have a pregnant friend to relate to so easily. And I agree, boys are fun! (This is my 3rd boy too, with 1 girl in the middle.)

Marcia said...

Aksel? Isn't that a rod that runs under the car? Hmmm. How about Ogden for a middle name?

If you would abandon your sunny climate and move to Utah I could help put your trash in the garbage and do your dishes:)

Liz said...

No, no, no. That's an axle, Mom. Sheesh. Get Josie to teach you a thing or two about cars before you go knocking our Norwegian names! :D j/k

Ummm . . . about the trash. I think I'll just live in my stinky house with the sun shining brightly outside my window. Thanks for the offer, though! :D

suzi said...

Wow! Good for you Liz. I'm excited to hear about your experience. Way to take control. Awesome. Steve and I had a great time visiting with Dan tonight. Hope you are well.

lindsey. said...

So excited to hear your joy for your birth plan. That is really what it should be like for everyone.

Sorry about the Chief's absence. As you know, he is joining Greg in TX tonight for the big mediation. Here's hoping they settle the case!

Love ya!

L

Erin said...

cool liz, can't wait to hear how things go for you!

love the norwegian names thing you have going on.

Amber and The Boys said...

First of all, I kid you not that there is no where, no where on earth that I would rather be than in the hospital immediately after giving birth to a baby. I LOVE it! I probably love all the things you hate-like nurses waking me up in the night to poke and prod.

Of course, I have had friends do the home birthing thing and LOVE that! :) I hope you love it too. Didn't you tell me you haven't done natural yet? Giving it a whirl this time? (It's not so bad-in the moment it is, but honestly, the recovery is better.)

Second, my hubbie was gone all last week too. We should have gotten together and commiserated.

Third-love the name-especially the meaning behind it. Very nice choice!

Kari said...

I am so excited for you to do the home birth! It is so wonderful and peaceful, you're going to love it. Clayton's birth was the most incredible thing. It's so different to be surrounded by love during your labor than being poked and prodded in a hospital by people you don't even know. Yay! I can hardly wait for little Karston to arrive so I can hear all about it